Pokémon Diamond
by Shinigami Gotenks
Summary: Niko, along with Kumiko and their Pokemon, travels the new land of Chubu in hopes of becoming Pokemon Champion of the region. Hardships for the two are inescapable as countless trainers and battles await them. Ch. 1 up!


Pokémon Diamond

Chapter I: A New Tale Opens

_The continent known as Chubu, a new land full of all kinds of Pokémon and aspiring new trainers, this is where the journey begins..._

The sun glistened in the sky as bird Pokémon flew high above the ground. The ground below was full of Pokémon running around the grassy fields not too far south from Cherryblossom Town. A young boy of 10 years was sleeping near a river, a Zangoose sleeping next to him.

The boy had dark black messy hair; he wore dark blue shorts going below his knees, a black shirt, and a red hoody, a sweater with a hood on it, which went over his black shirt. He let out a loud snort, turning to his side while sleeping.

Meanwhile, a girl who was not too far away, made her way in the boy's direction, pushing past the overgrown grass. The girl had black hair that went straight down her back and stopped above her butt, two strands of her hair ran down her shoulders. She wore a pink sleeveless-shirt with a white jacket that was not buttoned up over the sleeveless-shirt. She also wore a white skirt with a black stripe going down each side of the skirt.

"Niko, where are you?" the girl asked as she made her way out of the large grass and spotted the boy, Niko, sleeping. She sighed, noticing the Zangoose's left eye opening upon her arrival. "Do you enjoy doing nothing all day long?"

The boy, Niko, yawned rubbing his eyes as he wearily awoke, partially aware that the girl was there, the other part of him still asleep. "Wh-why'd you wake me up for?"

Kumiko's eyes slanted in frustration at the boy, "Didn't you say that you were going to come with me to Professor Almond's lab today to see the three new Pokémon she capture?"

There was a sudden revival of energy awakened in Niko as he quickly jumped to his feet, startling the Pokémon beside him. "Crap! I completely forgot about that!" Panicking, he turned to the Zangoose, "Zan, go back home, I'm gonna be out for a while."

The Zangoose shook it's head in comprehension, and the family Pokémon sped off in the direction of Niko's home.

Niko, wanting to waste no time, grabbed Kumiko's hand and dashed to the northwest in the direction of Professor Almond's lab. Kumiko struggled to keep up with Niko who seemed to be running at an inhuman speed.

"Slow down!" She cried watching the scenery she loved to gaze at pass her by in the blink of an eye. "I'm sure Professor Almond will wait for us!"

The boy took heed to what she was saying, but still continued to run. "If we don't hurry there, I'm sure that Kenji will suggest to the professor to go on with out us! You know how much the professor likes to display the Pokémon she's caught; she'll probably take Kenji into the wilderness to show off the Pokémon's abilities!"

She rolled her eyes, panting as she found it more difficult to breathe, "I doubt Professor Almond would do that to us." However, she expected Kenji to possibly do what Niko said he would do, especially since the two had been rivals for as long as she could remember. She bit her lip, unsure of what else she should say, "We're not too late, I'm sure we'll make to the lab in time."

They continued to run, gradually getting slower as weariness eventually caught up with them. It did not take long, however, for Professor Almond's laboratory to come into view. The lab was a large, white, two-story building with an orange roof; the roof was in the shape of half of a cylinder, horizontally positioned.

Niko came to a complete stop upon reaching a man standing outside of the laboratory. Kumiko had to come to a screeching halt in order to keep herself from running into Niko. The man looked up from the clipboard he was reviewing, and smiled at the two, though a little surprised at their sudden appearance.

"What bring you two here? Kenji assured us that you two were sick in bed and wouldn't be coming here for a while." While he said this, Niko looked at Kumiko in an "I told you so" manner, murmuring with irritation.

"Well, it seems Kenji got the wrong idea," Kumiko answered for the two of them once she saw that Niko was in the mood to go off on someone, "we were just a little late in coming here, we're definitely not sick."

The assistance continued to smile cheerfully at the two, thinking nothing of the obvious rivalry that existed between Niko and Kenji. Flipping through his clipboard as if searching it for something to say, he finally spoke up, "Ah, well then, if you're looking for Professor Almond and Kenji, then you're best bet would be to go to Route 201. I'm almost one hundred percent sure that Professor Almond said she was going there to show off the new Pokémon she caught."

Brightening up, Niko ran off in the direction of Route 201 leaving Kumiko behind. Sighing irritably, Kumiko thanked the assistant, waved goodbye, and chased after Niko with as much speed as she could while wearing a skirt.

Quite a bit ahead of Kumiko, Niko smiled with new vigor, wanting nothing more than to get to the professor before she decided to go back to her lab. The young boy sprinted onwards, passing by houses and people in the street, unconcerned with what was going on that did not have to do with Professor Almond's Pokémon. Then, he fell to the ground, tripping over a large hole in the ground, more than likely dug up by a Pokémon.

Kumiko ran up to the boy and could not stifle the laughter at his horrible luck, laughing more once he got up with a clod of dirt in his mouth. "Serves you right," Kumiko teased, her eyes slanted in a mischievous way, "maybe now you won't be so hasty."

"Shut up!" Niko spit the dirt out of his mouth, and started to wipe his tongue on his hoody.

Kumiko made a face at Niko, appalled at his behavior. "Eww! That's gross! Gosh! Can you please NOT do that?" Niko grinned mischievously at her, playfully spitting out his tongue to mock her. She rolled her eyes at him, trying to act like she was more mature than he was.

"Hey!" A sudden, familiar yell instantly grabbed their attention. They turned around, looking back in the direction of the laboratory that they could now barely make out. About 30 feet away from them was the assistant from before. He was running awkwardly, and he was waving his clipboard at them, still smiling like before.

Kumiko laughed in a uncomfortable manner, though she did not want to be rude, she just could not help but be freaked out by his smile. "Hello again. Umm...what are you doing here?" she asked in the kindest way she could.

"Oh, sorry about that," the man answered her. "You see, the professor just called me a few minutes ago, and I felt it necessary to ask her where exactly on Route 201 she was so I could tell you two."

"And you know where she and Kenji are?" Niko perked up with full attention. The assistant replied with a simple nod of his head, indicating the answer "yes". The young boy jumped up from off of the ground; the longer he was kept from seeing the professor's Pokémon, the more impatient he grew. "Well then show us!"

Luckily the assistant was or at least acted as if he was completely oblivious to the impolite tone Niko put into his words, and ushered them to follow him, walking at a steady pace to the dismay of Niko and to the delight of Kumiko.

The travelers traversed the dirt road in an awkward silence, the scenery around them becoming much more rural as they made their way away from the small town. More traveling on their part caused the surrounding scenes to once again change, now the trees getting closer and closer together as they entered Route 201; a sign being the indication that they had entered their desired destination.

Kumiko gazed at her surroundings in wonder, curious as to why there were less Pokémon around them than she had expected. "Uh...mister? Why aren't the Pokémon all over the place?"

"It's quite simple," the assistant answered while ducking under an overhanging tree branch. "It must be because we're making so much noise. Most Pokémon aren't going to just run about while we trek along like a bunch of wild pigs."

Nothing else was said on the subject, and the group continued walking along the dirt path, Niko and Kumiko curious as to where they were being taken. Tired of the walking, Niko was about to open his mouth to complain, but was cut off by the assistant. "Ah! There they are!"

The two younger of the three snapped their heads in the direction in which the assistant was pointing. Not but fifty feet away from them were two figures, recognizable to anyone who had seen them before. Like a pack of hungry dogs, Niko, and even Kumiko, charged towards the figures, intent on seeing the Pokémon Professor Almond had promised to show them.

"Professor! Professor Almond!"

The female turned around, her long, dark blue hair seemingly flowing in the wind. Professor Almond was certainly a woman to be drooled over. Everything about her body was seemingly perfect; the curves shaped in a flawless manner. Her face was no exception, everything from her deep indigo eyes to even her chin the ideal for what many considered to be beautiful.

"Oh, Kumiko! Niko! I thought you two weren't going to show up," she smiled at the two. From the looks of things, she had yet to show Kenji the Pokémon.

Stopping in front of Professor Almond, Niko gave Kenji a cold glance, which was returned with just as much contempt. "Yea, sorry about that. It just seems like _someone_ misinformed you." He made sure to emphasize the word someone, secretly indicating that it was Kenji by a nudge of his head. Kenji, slightly taller than Niko, had short, blue hair, which was spiked up in the front. For clothes he wore black pants that had a red streak going down the sides, and a red long-sleeved shirt with a black Pokéball in the middle of it.

Not seeing the subliminal message, Professor Almond let another sweet smile grace her face, "Well, I'm glad that you two managed to come! I was just about to show Kenji the Pokémon too." From her long, white lab coat she took out three golf-sized red and white Pokéballs. "Though you won't get the background information I gave him, at least you'll still get to see the Pokémon."

As if from nowhere, a bright light flashed throughout the air, bouncing from tree to tree with swift movements. The four people gazed at the light with ever-growing curiousity, giving their entire attention to it. Then, it just disappeared as quickly as it appeared, leaving no sound behind.

Almost the instant the blur of a light disappeared; a loud, almost inhuman screech was heard. Attention was drawn to the professor, who was holding onto her hand as drops of blood dripped onto the ground, the three Pokéballs she had held before were now scattered across the ground.

"Professor Almond, are you all right?" Kumiko gaped at the small wound on her hand as if it were a deeper gash.

"Jared!" Professor Almond completely ignored Kumiko's concerns, and turned with a hateful glare towards the assistant.

A turn of heads occurred, and what they saw was the assistance, now known as Jared, staring down at the ground, his face covered in shadow, giving him a menacing look. Now standing beside Jared was a Sneasel, it's claws sharp and ready for another attack.

"You! What are you doing?" Though she was questioning him, something in the way she talked revealed that she already knew what Jared was scheming.

Jared brought his head up and looked at those before him, he was still smiling just like before. "Why the cold tone, Almond? You've always been so kind to me before, why the sudden change?"

"Don't play around with me. Tell me what it is that you want." The professor's eyes constantly moved from Jared, to her pocket, and then to the three Pokéballs lying on the ground.

The sound of his voice changed to a more serious tone, but the ever-present smile on his face kept him from sounding so. "You know very well what I want. I want _that_." On the emphasis of the word "that", Jared pointed at her pocket, a small test-tube just barely poking out.

Meanwhile, Kenji had gotten the bright idea to pick up one of the discarded Pokéballs. Seeing his long time rival doing this, Niko took no time in mimicking Kenji, followed closely by Kumiko who thought it wise to do so. This would be the best time for them to do anything they could to prevent the corrupt assistant from harming them further.

As noiselessly as they had picked up the Pokéballs, the three simultaneously threw the Pokéballs to the ground. Upon the Pokéballs making contact with the ground the three balls burst open, and dazzling, red lights escaped from each of the Pokéballs, rapidly taking shapes recognizable as Pokémon – Pikachu, Totodile, and Roselia.

"Those are the Pokémon?" Niko stared in awe at the Pokémon in front of them; the other two gazed in wonder as well.

Jared took a look at the Pokémon, uninterested with what he wouldn't call a threat. He kept his gaze on Professor Almond's pocket, but did not completely ignore the three children. "Surely you three don't expect to defeat me even when you work together? Not one of you has a Pokémon License yet, and you're all inexperienced in battling. The odds are against you." The "assistant" looked down at his Sneasel, and as if they were speaking by telepathy, the Pokémon shook its head in understanding.

The Sneasel gave the three Pokémon a sneering gaze, and then disappeared from sight, once again becoming a blur that bounced off the trees around them. The three Pokémon stood where the Pokéballs had released them, awaiting orders from the three who had released them. They were too slow. In an instant, Sneasel flashed through the air and slammed itself into all three of the Pokémon, sending them flying to the ground.

"We can't just stand here and expect the Pokémon to know what to do," Kenji spoke up; the usual coolness to his voice had left him under the anxiety of controlling a Pokémon for the first time. "We've all been to school, we should at least be able to figure out one move that these Pokémon know. I'll take the Totodile, Kumiko you can command the Roselia, and Niko, Niko you get Pikachu."

"R-right..." Kumiko stammered while Niko said nothing.

Regaining their focus, they brought their attention back to their Pokémon, and pleasantly found that Sneasel had not attacked for a second time. This would be their chance. Another flash flew through the air, bouncing off a tree in the direction of the Pokémon.

"Now! Totodile, use Water Gun attack!"

"Pikachu Thunderbolt!"

"And Roselia, use Mega Drain on that Sneasel!"

Surprisingly, the Pokémon obeyed them on their first command, which was a bit unusual for at least one wouldn't have obeyed considering that the three kids weren't even trainers. Totodile let out a happy cry, and opened its mouth as wide as it could, sending a blast of water in the direction of the charging blur. Simultaneously, the Pikachu grabbed hold of its red cheeks and quickly charged up electricity, blasting it towards Sneasel, while Roselia's two flowers glowed a white color.

Sneasel stopped in its tracks, the power from the Mega Drain slowly draining its energy away at each passing second. Next, the semi-powerful Water Gun from Totodile slammed into the weakened Sneasel at full force, drenching the Pokémon. Pikachu's Thunderbolt was the last attack to strike, the lightning zapping Sneasel with more power than before since the opponent was drenched.

Sneasel let out a cry of anguish as the electricity continued to shock its body. Jared, who had been too deep in a "discussion" with Professor Almond, now jerked his head to look at his Pokémon, laying on the ground in a position suggesting that it was knocked out. His smile disappeared, replaced now with a look of utter surprise. "How...how in the world did _you_ three manage to do that?"

Professor Almond smirked, without a doubt happy that the three had managed to beat Jared's Pokémon even though they were not trainers yet. "Seems like you've gravely underestimated your opponents."

Jared didn't answer, he knew that things were looking bad for him right now, but he did have _one_ more trick up his sleeve. In awesomely swift speed, Jared recalled his Pokémon back to its Pokéball, then dug a small black ball out of his pocket, and threw it to the ground. Upon collision with the ground, the ball exploded causing a blinding smokescreen to rise in the surrounding area.

Coughing and mass confusion ensued as Professor Almond, Niko, Kumiko, and Kenji tried desperately to find out what was happening. Another sound was heard, and the sound of an engine roared along with the screeching of tires.

The smoke lifted, and when they opened their eyes once again, Jared was gone, a cloud of dust in the air from the vehicle.

The professor ran up to the three children, and returned the three Pokémon to their respective Pokéballs. She reached down to place the Pokéballs into her coat pocket, but what she found horrified her. Not saying a word to them, she searched around the area in which she had been standing, but let out a desperate sigh, obviously stressed out about whatever it was that she was searching for.

Finally, annoyed by their ignorance, Niko spoke up. "Professor, what is exactly wrong?"

"H-he took it! He took **the** test tube!"

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Hehehe, yes, a cliffhanger, but don't worry! The next chapter will explain more information on Jared and the other stuff not explained. And, yes, quite a lousy fight scene and all, but this chapter was turning out longer than I wanted it to, so I cut it short. :P Anyway, please review after reading a chapter, it would make me very happy. Also, you can submit characters that you want to appear in this fic, just include their name, sex, age, Pokémon in their possession, and a short description of their looks. Thanks for reading! Until next time, see ya!


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